Arquivos Pastoral Ministry - OTPB - Ordem dos Teólogos e Pastores do Brasil

mar312020 by @prflavionunesNo Comments

Leaders, Pace Yourself During the Quarantine

ATUALIDADES

I still remember when it caught me. Hurricane Harvey had devastated our city in August, it was now October, and I’d been working around the clock for six weeks. Exhaustion just ran me down. I had sprinted into a marathon. Many leaders are doing the same thing right now as a worldwide disruption demands urgent decisions, adjustments, communication, and a different kind of energy. The relentless work is noble and understandable, but be warned: it’s not sustainable. I ended up taking a four-day trip to Galveston, holing up in a rental on the Gulf, taking long walks on the beach, eating in random restaurants, sleeping whenever I wanted, reading Ecclesiastes over and over, and brain-sweeping into my journal. My mind, body, and spirit had conspired to demand a shutdown, and there was no nego...

mar262020 by @prflavionunesNo Comments

6 Ways to Encourage Online Giving

ATUALIDADES

Churches are facing a new reality, and no one yet knows when it will end or how it will ultimately affect Christians. Two factors have collided: a rapid freefall in the stock market and the inability to gather for in-person worship. We have some familiarity with the first factor. Many pastors remember the effect of the 2008 market crash. Incomes were reduced and jobs were lost. Giving declined, church budgets were cut, and staff positions could no longer be funded. But, in addition to the first factor, there’s another one at play. As the market dropped in 2008, we could still gather for weekly worship. But as the market drops in 2020, gathering isn’t viable or wise due to health concerns for all. This is deeply significant. Though the decision is not regrettable, we’ve eliminated the p...

mar252020 by @prflavionunesNo Comments

Can Baptism and the Lord’s Supper Go Online?

ATUALIDADES

Editors’ note: To read a different perspective on whether to do the ordinances amid the COVID-19 pandemic, see Bill Riedel’s entry. Can baptism and the Lord’s Supper go online? For the next who-knows-how-long, churches in many parts of the world will be unable to gather. So pastors like me are lovingly scrambling for solutions. There’s no playbook for this. When the church can’t gather physically, what can we do to encourage and nourish God’s people? Most evangelical churches are livestreaming something resembling their Sunday service. Although one could raise questions about the wisdom of this practice, I don’t think anything in Scripture prohibits it. But what about baptism and the Lord’s Supper? Can those two elements of the church’s gathered worship be performed remotely? Wi...

mar232020 by @prflavionunesNo Comments

4 Steps to Help Small Churches Implement Online Giving

ATUALIDADES

With church attendance impossible in most places due to the COVID-19 pandemic, tithes and contributions may also decrease, and churches must rethink how members can continue the stewardship of giving. Steady giving is doubly important for small churches. Electronic giving is an effective way to maintain steady income—and implementing it, even for smaller churches, shouldn’t be overly complicated. Here are four easy steps. 1. Select a Provider The first and probably most difficult step is selecting a company to process electronic contributions and deposit them into your bank account. Companies differ in pricing, customer support, and how they process contributions. I recommend searching for companies specializing in churches. For example, LifeWay is currently making its Generosity givin...

mar232020 by @prflavionunesNo Comments

‘Church Life Goes On’: Italian Pastor Reflects on COVID-19

ATUALIDADES

The coronavirus is still heavily hitting Italy, and the outcomes in terms of victims, losses, and long-term consequences for the economy (e.g., jobs) appear dramatic. It’s too early to grasp the lasting impact of the crisis for the church. We’ll need time to reflect on what the Lord is doing in this. Certainly, he is at work in these difficult circumstances. Discerning and understanding his extraordinary providence, especially when it comes in the form of disrupting our plans and practices, is a task that will accompany our prayers and reflections for some time. Here are some tentative, provisional, half-processed points that come to mind as we seek the “mind of Christ” in this pandemic. Church Life Goes On Until the Lord returns, church life must go on, whatever the circumstances. Thi...

mar212020 by @prflavionunesNo Comments

How Do You Keep a Small Church Going During COVID-19?

ATUALIDADES

For more than 50 years as a Christian and 40 years as a pastor, my week reaches crescendo with the church gathering. Together—singing, fellowshiping, praying, hearing of God’s faithfulness, encouraging fellow believers, proclaiming God’s Word—is normal every week. It’s an anticipated gift from the Lord. But this time last year, what I love so dearly got ripped away. Due to four months of intensive chemotherapy, my oncologist mandated: stay in isolation. Four months! From mid-February to early June, I stayed home on Sundays just like every other day of the week. I longed to gather with the church and lift my voice with them in praises to our Lord. I so wanted to put my hand on a brother’s shoulder and pray for him. I wanted to bend down and talk to the children who grace our congregatio...